Acts 27

Introduction

We spent our time last week on chapters 25 and 26. In chapter 25 Paul stood trial before Festus, the Roman governor who replaced Felix. Festus suggested that the trial should be moved from Caesarea to Jerusalem, where the Jewish Sanhedrin could help him decide what to do with Paul. Paul didn’t want to be handed over to the Jews. And so, he appealed to Caesar. That is to say, he wanted the Roman Emperor to hear his case, which apparently every Roman citizen had the right to request.

And then in chapter 26 King Agrippa and his sister Bernice turned up at Caesarea to greet the new governor. And Festus told Agrippa about Paul; and Agrippa asked if he could hear Paul. And so, the next day, Paul was brought before Festus and Agrippa and Bernice and a lot of other dignitaries to make his defence.

And he spoke about his Jewish upbringing and what he once did to persecute the church and how he met the Risen Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus who appointed him to be his witness to Jews and Gentiles and to declare to everyone that they should repent and turn to God.

And Festus interrupted his speech, saying that Paul’s great learning was driving him insane. But Paul assured him that he was not insane and everything he was saying was true and reasonable and his hope is that all who were listening to him would become a Christian like he was.

And right at the end of the chapter, Agrippa said to Festus that Paul could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar. In other words, Paul had done nothing wrong. He didn’t deserve to be imprisoned. He didn’t deserve to be executed. He had done nothing wrong.

And so, we come to chapter 27 where Luke records for us the journey from Caesarea towards Rome. And you’ll have picked up from the reading that it was a difficult and dangerous journey. It was not plain-sailing, because they went through a storm and then the ship they were in ran aground at Malta and was broken up by the waves. Those who could swim had to swim for their lives; and those who couldn’t swim had to cling to planks of wood and other pieces of the ship to keep them from drowning as they made their way to the beach.

If you’re reading from the NIV, you can see that the chapter can be divided easily into three sections: there’s the initial part of the journey before the storm; then there’s the account of the storm; and then there’s the shipwreck. And you’ll notice in verse 1 that it includes the word ‘we’. It says: ‘When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius.’ So, Luke is with Paul once again. The last time Luke included himself in what he was writing was back in chapter 21. But Luke is now back with Paul and he’s giving us his own eye-witness testimony of what happened.

Verses 1 to 12

Paul and the other prisoners — who may have been convicted criminals who were heading for Rome for the gladiatorial games — were handed over to this Roman centurion who had the task of bringing them all to Rome.

They boarded a ship and put out to sea. This was probably a trading ship and they were therefore hitching a ride on it. They landed first at Sidon, where the centurion allowed Paul to visit his friends who lived there. Paul is, by now, a well-travelled man. He’s been all over the Mediterranean and knows lots of people in lots of places. However, they soon left Sidon and put out to sea. The passed by the island of Cyprus and arrived at the port of Myra in Lycia, which is in modern-day Turkey. There they switched ships. And according to verse 7, they made slow progress for a number of days and had difficulty arriving off Cnidus, which is on the south-west tip of modern-day Turkey. They then sailed around the island of Crete and landed at Fair Havens.

Luke says in verse 9 that they’d lost much time and sailing had now become dangerous because it was after the Fast, which is another name for the Day of Atonement. He means that sailing was dangerous at that time of the year, because of winter storms. Paul, who was an experienced traveller, warned them that their voyage was going to be disastrous. But instead of listening to Paul’s advice, the centurion followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship. And their advice was presumably what we read in verse 12: move on from Fair Havens and make for Phoenix on the eastern side of Crete so that they can winter there.

Verses 13 to 26

According to verse 13, a gentle wind began to blow. And so, they thought they had obtained what they wanted. They were hoping for a nice, easy journey from one part of Crete to another. However: ‘Before very long, a wind of hurricane force called the north-easter, swept down from the island.’ You know it must be bad when this kind of wind has its own name. And presumably if it has its own name, then it also has its own reputation for being very, very bad. And the ship was caught by the storm and couldn’t head into the wind. So, they gave way to it. In other words, they gave up trying to fight it. As one of the commentators puts it (Schnabel), they surrendered the ship to the wind. They’d let the wind take them wherever it blows.

According to verse 16 they passed a small island called Cauda, which is slightly to the west of Crete. With some difficulty, they made the lifeboat safe. Normally the lifeboat was towed behind the ship, but they presumably wanted to make it secure by hoisting it on board. And then they passed ropes under ship’s hull to strengthen it. So, they were clearly afraid that the force of the wind and waves would cause the hull to come apart. And they were also afraid that they would run aground on some nearby sand-bars. And so, they lowered what the NIV calls ‘the sea anchor’, but it could also be the rigging. Presumably they hoped that by taking these measures the wind would blow them past the sand-bars.

And according to verse 18, they took such a battering from the wind and waves that they began to throw the cargo overboard to lighten the load and keep the ship afloat. On the third day of the storm, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard. You can see how desperate they are: they’re just throwing stuff away to keep the ship going. And when neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued to rage, they finally gave up hope of being saved. Because of the bad weather, they couldn’t see the sun or the stars. So, they couldn’t navigate. They would have no idea where they were or where they were heading. And it seemed hopeless to them.

But in the darkness, there’s one bright light. Paul stood up among the men and he told them that they should’ve listened to him back in Crete. I don’t think he’s saying ‘I told you so!’ I think he’s saying to them: ‘You didn’t listen to me the last time and I was right. But I hope you listen to me now.’ And what he wants them to do now is to keep up their courage — so don’t be afraid — because not one of you will be lost. The ship will be wrecked, but not one of you will lose his life.

And Paul knows this because an angel of the Lord appeared to him with a message from the Lord. And the Lord’s message was that Paul must stand trial before Caesar. In other words, he will not perish in the sea. God will bring him through the storm and will bring him safely to Rome. Moreover, not only will Paul be kept safe, but God has graciously given Paul the lives of all who sail with him. In other words, none of them will die because of the storm.

And Paul finished his little speech to them by telling them again to keep up their courage, because he has faith in God that it will happen just as God said it would. The ship will be destroyed, but their lives will be spared.

Verses 27 to 44

In verse 27 Luke refers to the fourteenth night. I think he’s referring to the fourteenth night of the storm. Imagine being stuck in a storm for two weeks! And they were being driven by the wind and waves across the Adriatic Sea. Around midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. And so, they took soundings to measure the depth of the water. And right enough, the water was becoming shallower which suggests that they were nearing dry land. But that also meant they might be driven onto rocks and the ship would be destroyed. So, they dropped the anchors to try to halt the ship; and they prayed for daylight to come so that they could see where they are and what dangers surrounded them.

According to verse 30, the sailors tried to lower the lifeboat and get themselves to safety. But Paul warned the centurion about it and made clear that unless they stay on the ship, they cannot be saved. And so, the soldiers cut the lifeboat loose.

Just before dawn, Paul urged them all to eat something, because it seems they haven’t eaten for days and they need to renew their strength for what lies ahead. And to encourage them to eat, he himself ate some bread in front of them. And it’s here that Luke tells us that there were 276 people on board. Maybe someone had to count them all so that the food could be distributed equally among them. And when all 276 had eaten what they needed, they once again lightened the load by throwing grain over board.

And when daylight finally came, they could see the land. And they saw a bay and a sandy beach. And they decided to run the ship aground there if possible. So, they cut away the anchors, which were holding them in place. They untied the rudders and hoisted one of the sails and made for the beach. But before they reached it, the ship ran aground on a sand-bar. The front of the ship was stuck fast. It would not move. Meanwhile the back of the ship was being battered by the waves, because the storm was still blowing. And the back of the ship came apart and the ship began to break into pieces.

The soldiers, who were responsible for securing the prisoners, were afraid that they might escape. And in those days, guards were killed if their prisoners escaped. And so, the soldiers were prepared to kill the prisoners to prevent them from getting away. That would also mean killing Paul, who was counted among the prisoners. And so, the centurion, who wanted to save Paul, gave orders not to kill them. And he ordered those who could swim to swim for the shore and for everyone else to grab hold of some wood to keep them afloat. And they were to make their way to shore that way. And in this way, everyone reached dry land in safety.

Application

Among other things, this passage teaches us about God’s providence.

Our church’s Larger Catechism defines God’s works of providence this way:

God’s works of providence are his most holy, a wise, and powerful preserving and governing all his creatures; ordering them, and all their actions, to his own glory.

So, according to the Larger Catechism — and the Shorter Catechism says something similar — God preserves and governs all of his creatures to his own glory. He preserves all his creatures by sustaining us and by keeping us alive. And he governs all his creatures to ensure that what we decide and do is in accordance with his most holy will. He works out his will for the world and for us by governing us. Even when we sin against his holy commandments, he’s able to use our sin to accomplish his own holy ends.

And so, in this passage, we see how the Lord preserved the life of Paul and everyone else on board that ship. Though they, at one point, gave up all hope that they would be saved, nevertheless the Lord saved them from the storm. He preserved their lives. He sustained them at sea and he kept them from drowning. And that’s wonderful and we should marvel at it.

And it’s interesting that, in verse 24, where Paul reports what the angel said to him, the angel said that God had graciously given Paul the lives of all who sail with him. God had graciously given Paul their lives. The Lord was under no obligation to save any of them. He did not have to save them. But he saved their lives because he is gracious and kind and he’s abounding in love. And he does not treat us as our sins deserve. And so, every day he sustains our lives on the earth, even though we have done nothing to deserve his kindness and even though we have, in fact, sinned against him continually in thought and word and deed. But instead of destroying us, he sustains us and he maintains our life on the earth. This is his wonderful kindness to us and it speaks to us of his overflowing love to his creatures. Because of his overflowing love, he made us to be the objects of his love and he loves us every day by sustaining us and protecting us even though we don’t deserve it.

There’s another Catechism though, which I want to mention. I’ve mentioned it before. In fact, I mentioned it last Sunday evening when we were studying John 5. It’s the Heidelberg Catechism. And this is what it says about God’s providence:

Providence is the almighty and ever-present power of God by which God upholds, as with his hand, heaven and earth and all creatures, and so rules them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and lean years, food and drink, health and sickness, prosperity and poverty — all things, in fact, come to us not by chance but by his fatherly hand.

I like that definition because it’s so comprehensive. God not only upholds all his creatures, but he upholds heaven and earth. He upholds all of heaven above and everything on earth below. And the Heidelberg Catechism lists some of the things that God governs to make the point that God rules over every aspect of our life and whatever happens to us. Nothing happens by chance, but by God’s hand.

And that’s related to today’s passage, because it means that the storm was under God’s control. That north-easter wind of hurricane strength did not happen by chance, but by God’s hand. The Lord our God — who made all things and who sustains all things — directs all things. The wind and the rain are under his control. He holds the sun and the moon and the stars in the palm of his hand, as it were. He decides when the wind will blow and how hard and in what direction and what damage it will do. It’s all under his power.

And the Heidelberg Catechism is careful to say that nothing happens to us by chance, but by God’s fatherly hand. He’s not a monster. He’s not a tyrant. The God who sent the storm on Paul and his companions is Paul’s heavenly Father who loves Paul and cares for him and whose will for Paul is only good.

And that’s what we all need to remember, because as the old hymn says: ‘God moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform.’ God performs wonders. He really does. The things he does in the world and for his people are truly wonderful.

But they are also mysterious. Think about what happened to Paul. Back in Acts 23, after Paul had stood before the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, and when he was back in the barracks, waiting to see what the Roman commander would do to him, the Lord appeared to him and told him to take courage, because just as Paul had testified about the Lord in Jerusalem, so he must also testify about the Lord in Rome. In other words, it was God’s will for Paul to reach Rome. That was God’s plan for Paul. The Lord was going to take Paul to Rome, where he would speak to everyone he met about the Lord Jesus.

Now jump forward to today’s passage. Paul has appealed to Caesar. Festus has agreed to send him. He’s been handed over to a Roman centurion and he’s been taken on board a ship. He’s now finally on his way to Rome. He’s going where God wants him to be. This is all part of God’s plan for Paul. Therefore you’d think that it would all be plain-sailing for Paul, because he was going where God wanted him to go. It would all be plain-sailing and he’d arrive in Rome, relaxed and ready to do God’s will.

But it wasn’t plain-sailing. It was the exact opposite of plain-sailing. Instead of a gentle breeze, there was a hurricane-force wind, which blew the ship across the sea for fourteen days and nights. Up and down and up and down and side to side and up and down. And after all that, the ship ran aground and they had to swim for their lives.

And according to the Heidelberg Catechism, which is only reflecting the teaching of the Scriptures, all things that happen to us don’t happen by chance, but by God’s fatherly hand. The storm didn’t happen by chance. God sent it. God caused that wind to blow. He caused the ship to be driven across the sea. He caused the ship to run aground and the bow to stick fast and the stern to break apart. God caused all of this to happen.

And we wonder why? Why did God send the storm when Paul was going where God wanted him to go? It makes no sense to us. And so we have to confess that God’s moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform.

Last week I read a letter from the Moderator of the General Assembly who said that the PCI is caught in a storm and that the storm continues. He was referring to the safeguarding crisis. And in one sense we can explain how this crisis happened and what mistakes were made and what some people should and shouldn’t have done. We can explain how it happened just as a meteorologist can explain how a storm happens. But the meteorologist cannot explain why a storm happened. And neither can we explain why the safeguarding crisis happened or for what purpose. We can’t explain why God has sent this storm on our denomination. We can’t explain it, because God moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform.

And all of us, in our daily lives, face all kinds of troubles and trials and there’s sorrow and sadness and there are personal crises which arise from nowhere. Perhaps even this past week something has happened in your life to rock you. And someone might be able to explain to you how it happened and what led up to it. But no one can explain to you why it happened or for what purpose. No one can explain to you why God sent this trouble into your life. We can’t explain why, because God’s ways are above our ways and his thoughts are higher than ours and he moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform.

If an angel came to us, as one came to Paul, then we would have that to help us. But God doesn’t normally send angels to explain things to us today. But what we do have is this: we have God’s word. We have the Bible. And God speaks to us through his word to reassure us of his overflowing goodness and love. In his word, he tells us that he loves us so much that he gave his only begotten Son to be our Saviour and to give up his life on the cross to pay for our sins and to make peace for us with God. He loves us so much that he did not spare his Son, but he gave him up for us and for our salvation. And God the Son loves us so much that he was willig to give up his life so that we can have everlasting life.

In his word, God reassures us again and again and again of his love for us: of his overflowing love and his abounding goodness and how he will work all things together for our good. And he sends his Spirit into the hearts of his people to persuade us that God is our Father who loves us and cares for us and who will keep us always.

And therefore, knowing how much God loves us, we can trust him no matter what happens to us. We can trust him. And we should trust him, because he’s our heavenly Father who loves us and who cares for us and who will keep us.

Conclusion

We don’t know why God sent that storm on Paul. But in the end, God brought Paul to Rome. And we don’t know why God has sent this safeguarding storm on the PCI. We don’t know, but we do know we can trust the Lord and that, in the end, he’ll bring us into his presence in the new heavens and earth where we will see him and where we’ll be perfectly happy and holy for ever.

And why does God send troubles and trials into your life? We don’t know. But we know he’s faithful and good and abounding in steadfast love and mercy; and that his will for his people who love him is good and that his plans and purposes are good. And everything he does is designed to bring glory to his name. And that means that, in the end, and when everything is sorted out according to God’s will, we’ll stand up and we’ll worship and adore him, because everything he does is good.